Andrei Belousov
Head of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation
Andrei Removich Bel ousov is the Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation, a scientist and economist.
Brief biography
Andrei Belousov was born on March 17, 1959 in Moscow. His father, Rem Belousov, was a Soviet economist, considered the creator of the Soviet scientific school in the field of pricing and management.
Belousov graduated from the Second Physics and Mathematics School and the Economics Department of the Lomonosov Moscow State University, where he majored in economic cybernetics.
At one time he was an employee of the Institute of Economics and Forecasting of Scientific and Technological Progress of the USSR, General Director of the Center for Macroeconomic Analysis and Short-Term Forecasting.
From 2012, he served as Minister of Economic Development, and from 2013 to 2020 he was Assistant to the President of the Russian Federation. In January 2020, he was appointed First Deputy Prime Minister.
Appointment to the Ministry of Defense
On May 12, 2024, Russian propaganda media reported that Russian dictator Vladimir Putin decided to replace the Minister of Defense. Sergei Shoigu was dismissed (and later appointed to the position of Secretary of the Russian Security Council), and the new minister was unexpectedly made by the economist Belousov.
It is believed that his main task is to audit Russia's army spending.
International sanctions
Belousov has been under personal sanctions by Ukraine since June 2022 due to Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
He was also subsequently placed on the sanctions lists of the European Union, the United States, Japan, Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia.
Family
Andrei Belousov has been married twice. His current wife is Larisa Vladimirovna Belousova (Avdeeva). From his first marriage, Belousov has a son Pavel (born in 1994).
